


Vows

by gingayellow



Series: Shiro and Keith are Married and Happy and Okay and Everyone Else is Happy and Okay Post-Series AU [1]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Alternate Universe, Gen, M/M, Post-Series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-03
Updated: 2016-07-03
Packaged: 2018-07-19 20:49:08
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,089
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7376866
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/gingayellow/pseuds/gingayellow
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Zarkon's been defeated, and he and Keith are living peacefully on Arus. If Shiro is going to propose, now is the time. [Shiro/Keith, post-series AU. VERY fluffy. Content warnings for past trauma, and discussing emotional abuse in Keith's childhood. Spoilers for everything.]</p>
            </blockquote>





	Vows

Title: Vows  
Fandom: Voltron: Legendary Defender  
Characters/Pairing: Shiro/Keith, Allura/Lance, Shay/Hunk, Romelle/Sven (really)  
Rating: PG  
Disclaimer: Not mine, anything mentioned here by name isn't mine  
Warnings: Canonical parental death mention, discussing child emotional abuse in Keith’s past.  
Notes: For hc_bingo, the prompt is "learning to be loved." Post-series AU, and it’s a wedding fic, so yes, it is very syrupy. There are some Lion Force and Go Lion references here as well (the most obvious one being Sven and Romelle, who are my 80s Voltron OTP, so I couldn’t help myself).

\--

Their cottage was within sight, so Shiro decided it was fine if he stopped in his jog for a drink. He slowed his pace, then took out his water bottle, taking a long sip. It was roughly sunrise, but the Arusian sky was still a dull grey. Hmm. He would have to cancel weekly stargazing with his class. However, there was nothing stopping him from—

“Mr. Shiro!” Fala (the youngest daughter of one of the older Arusian families) jumped up and hugged his right arm tight.

Shiro took a moment to be amazed at that, but then smiled at her. “Hey, you. I can’t finish my jog if you’re hugging me.”

“Yes, you can!” Fala tightened her grip.

“Anyways,” Shiro said as he arranged his arm so he could look her in the eye, “what are you doing up so early?”

She beamed at him. “I’m **really** excited about stargazing tonight!”

Shiro huffed. “About that. I don’t think the weather’s going to let us have us class tonight.”

Fala howled, swinging from his arm. She’d always been a little hot-headed, so Shiro let her cool down before he spoke again. “But the weather should be clear tomorrow.”

“Okay,” Fala said sulkily as she hopped down on the ground.

Shiro smiled at her, kneeling down so he could look her in the face properly. “Do me a favor, and let the other kids know class is canceled?” He’d already sent out a class email, but not all the local Arusians had computers. Fala smiled back, nodded, and bounded off.

He needed to finish his jog, but Shiro opted for another sip from his water bottle. He had a free day. The only thing that would stop him from asking were if Keith’s work for the day was especially stressful, or his own nerves.

But… the Galra Empire was gone. People were rebuilding their lives, himself included. And while some hurts would never quite go away, he thought as he flexed his metal arm, they had eased. He didn’t have to fight anymore. He could be himself, with the people he loved.

Not to mention he now had a free day, which practically speaking, would make asking much easier. Maybe today would be a good day to propose to Keith after all.

Shiro put away his water bottle, and resumed his jog.

\--

Keith was waiting for him outside the door, clothes rumpled from sleep, rubbing at his eyes. He growled at Shiro.

“Good morning to you, too.” Shiro kissed Keith’s forehead, then took his hand so he could guide him back inside the house. 

“Mm.” Keith glared at him blearily. “Where were you? You run away from home or something?”

Okay, someone was clearly not fully awake, even if he was walking and talking. “I went for a jog, Keith. I’ve been doing that for months now, remember?” He smiled. “And again, you’re welcome to join me anytime.”

Keith growled again.

“Or not.” Shiro decided that now wasn’t the time to remind Keith that if he didn’t stay up so late fixing/designing aircrafts, he could have a decent night’s sleep again. Besides, he had other things on his mind. “So… what are your plans for today?”

“Nothing.” Keith let so, padding over to the cupboard, rummaging for a mug. “Romelle’s busy building some houses for some of the people moving here, so upgrading her scooter’s gonna have to wait.”

“So you have a free day?”

Keith frowned. “I guess. Why are you so interested?”

Shiro managed a laugh. “This may surprise you, but I’m somewhat invested in my boyfriend’s life.”

“Well, if you’re that curious, get ready to thrill as I make breakfast—hey!”

“You shower and get into clean clothes.” Shiro took Keith by the shoulders, shoving him gently in the shower’s general direction. “I’ll make breakfast today.”

“But you were jogging, you probably want—”

“I’ll be fine. I got something planned anyways.”

“Um. Okay.” Keith rubbed the back of his neck, but did what was requested. 

_There goes the man that I am probably going to propose to today._

\--

He decided to make Keith’s favorite breakfast—French toast and coffee. It was never going to taste the same as it did on Earth, since there were no chickens on Arus. Romelle’s husband, Sven (one of the first Humans who’d left to start a new life after Earth had joined the Altean Alliance) had created substitutes for a lot of ingredients, but it wasn’t an exact science.

Still, he’d take almost French toast over goo any day. Especially today.

“Morning.” Keith’s hair was damp, he was wearing clean clothes, and he was awake enough to smile. “Something smells good.”

“I’m glad you think so. The coffee’s ready, if you want to pour yourself a mug.”

“I always do.” Keith took the coffee pot, and poured it into the red mug Shiro had placed for him on the table. He then gulped down half the mug. “Hm. Sven’s getting better at faking coffee.”

“Just wait until you try the toast.” Shiro placed said toast in the middle of the table, before settling down with his tablet.

Keith dug in. “So, any interesting emails?”

“Well, one from Lance. He’s panicking because one of the Altean marriage rituals involves taming a wild tuskgoat, and they’re extinct.” He scrolled down. “He wants to know if we think taming a space mouse would do.”

Keith laughed around a mouthful of toast (again, this was the man Shiro was considering proposing to). “I want to know how he got engaged to Allura in the first place.”

“He grew up, realized that bad pickup lines weren’t working, and was honest with his feelings for her.”

“Tell him the space mice are too strong-willed for him.”

Shiro gave him a look, but then returned to his emails. “Pidge and her family are establishing another science lab on Balto. She wants to know if we want to visit when it’s officially open.”

Keith gulped down his second mug of coffee thoughtfully. “Yes, but we gotta dig out our winter coats before we go.”

“Agreed. Oh, and we’re uncles again.”

Keith gaped at him. “Hunk and Shay adopted another kid?”

“Yep. They’re naming her Hannah, after Hunk’s grandmother.”

“Well,” Keith leaned back in his seat. “Guess I’ll see what the local stores have for toys for when we eventually visit them again.”

“Good idea.” Shiro put his tablet away in exchange for a slice of toast. Everyone he knew was settling down. If he needed a sign, this was probably it.

“Keith.”

He was pouring more coffee in his mug. “What?”

“I need to ask you something.”

“Hold on.” Keith downed his mug. “Okay, go ahead.”

Shiro took a deep breath, and ignored his heart pounding. “We’ve been together for awhile. I can’t imagine who else I’d want in my life.” When Keith smiled at him over his mug, Shiro reached out, holding his hand. “So, maybe. If you’d like, we could formalize that.”

“… What?”

Shiro flinched. Time for the direct approach. “Marry me.”

That was it. He’d proposed.

Keith pulled away his hand, and then stood up, face pale. “I have to go.” He went outside, leaving Shiro alone.

\--

Shiro accepted Keith’s refusal. He did, however, want to apologize. If he’d known that it would upset Keith so much, he never would have said anything. So he pushed aside how he felt, and headed for the door.

Keith was outside, sitting on his hovercraft.

“Hey,” Shiro said softly. “You running away from home?”

Keith glanced at him, almost smiling. “Yes, Shiro. I’m running away from home. It’s time to embrace my true destiny of teaching Arusians how to drive vehicles twenty times their size.”

He almost smiled back. If Keith was making a joke, maybe things weren’t as bad as he imagined. “I’m sorry for earlier. Forget I said anything.”

Keith shook his head. “It’s not that, I just.” He gazed at Shiro levelly. “Do you know what my life was like before you?”

“I know what you’ve told me. That’s about it,” Shiro admitted. He’d lost both parents, and had been bounced around relative who didn’t really want him.

Keith turned his attention to the grey sky. “When your childhood is basically being surrounded by people who hate your guts, it affects how you see yourself.” His voice was distant. “You resign yourself to the fact that you’re not going to be loved.”

“Keith, I—”

“Of course, things improved. I have friends and a job and a purpose.” His hand drifted to the belt hook where his bayard still rested. “But some things stick with you.”

Shiro’s right hand twitched. “I know.”

“But then you came along. You didn’t find me annoying. Heck, you found me charming.” Keith’s hands went to his bun for a moment, since it was already falling apart. “I had no idea what to make of that. I don’t know how you were so patient with me back then.”

“I was selfish, and wanted to know you better.” Shiro smiled, leaning against the front door. “You were the mysterious ace pilot who had no qualms with challenging his superiors, if he felt the situation warranted it. I’d never met anyone like you in my life.”

“See? There you go again.” Keith huffed in amazement. “Everyone else thought I was just a brat, myself included.” He stared at the ground. “You were the first person who thought there was more to me than flying and hating everything, and I took that to heart. That’s one of the reasons I want to be with you.” He huffed again. “Thinking back, it was kinda silly to panic like that, since we’re pretty much already married already.”

“I put you on the spot. I shouldn’t have done that.”

Keith hopped off his craft, and walked over to Shiro. He didn’t look him in the eyes, however. “It just makes things official. And if it’s official, I could mess it up.” He frowned. “And I couldn’t deal with it if I messed things up with you.”

“Hey.” Shiro patted Keith’s shoulder. “If it helps, you’ve done the exact opposite of messing it up.”

Keith glanced up at him. “You’re not kidding?”

“Not about this.” Gently, Shiro wrapped an arm around Keith’s waist. When he didn’t pull away, Shiro tugged Keith closer to him. “You’ve somehow managed to be both the one stable thing in my life, and keep me going, even when I’m at my lowest. And, um.” He cleared his throat. “I’d like it to always be that way, if you’re willing.”

Keith flushed, diverting his gaze again. “Of course I’m willing.”

“Really?”

“Yes, really,” Keith grumbled. “On top of everything I just said, you’re funny and kind and brave and brilliant.” He shook his head. “I gotta face it, I hit the jackpot.”

“Heh. Classic Spider-man.”

“What?”

“Nevermind.” Shiro made a mental note to ask his brother to ship him his old comic books. “But,” and now he ran a hand through Keith’s hair. “I’m glad that you feel the same way.”

“Yeah.” Keith kissed Shiro’s jawline. “Hey. You know how that proposal didn’t quite work out how you wanted?”

“You don’t have to remind me. I was there.”

“Well…” It was very rare to see Keith look playful as he spoke. “You wanna try asking me again—Shiro, you don’t have to get on one knee, sheesh.”

“Actually, I do.” Keith could roll his eyes all he wanted. He was going to do this right this time. “Keith.” He took Keith’s hand in his own, looking up at him. “Will you marry me?”

The sky was grey and gloomy, but it didn’t matter. Keith was brighter and warmer than any sun as he nodded. “Yeah. I will.”

The relief/joy was so strong that Shiro found Keith in his arms before he fully realized what he was doing. For a few moments, everything was laughter and spinning and each other.

“C’mon.” Shiro beamed down at his fiancé. “Let’s go celebrate our engagement.”

“Okay, but you might need to put me down so I can drive.”

“Oh. Right.”

\--

Their celebration wasn’t anything too elaborate. Mostly because they weren’t elaborate guys, but also because there wasn’t much to do on Arus. A dozen families for various planets had come to settle for a new life after Zarkon was gone, and the Arusians, always eager for new friends, had welcomed them. There had been a few conflicts in the beginning, but nothing that Romelle and Princess Allura couldn’t smooth out. So now, just a few years after Zarkon’s defeat there was a school, farms, a mechanic, and one restaurant where they were planning to go for lunch after a long drive.

Keith was sipping on his space juice when he asked, “So, where are we gonna get married?”

“I’m sorry?”

Keith took another sip. “Well, I don’t know about you, but I don’t want to be on the same planet with Galaxy Garrison if I can help it.”

“… You have a point.” While getting married in Takayama with his family at the service was appealing, so was making sure Garrison left them all alone. “What about New Altea?”

“Shiro, everyone knows who we are there, too. We’d be too busy dealing with people wanting to know all about Princess Allura to actually get married.”

“Hrn.” Shiro took a sip of his juice glumly. “Balto’s too cold, and Balmera’s too far away.”

Keith frowned. “You didn’t think about any of this, did you.”

“I did! I proposed, didn’t I?”

“Did you think of what to do after that?”

Shiro took out his straw, and half-heartedly tossed it at Keith.

“Well,” Keith continued as he avoided the straw, “we could always elope. Heck, we could do it tonight, if we wanted. Everyone on this planet loves you, we could find some witnesses, and be married before we go to bed. We wouldn’t even have to worry about fitting in a ceremony around your teaching and my job.”

It was about then the server came with their orders, so Shiro thanked her before returning his attention to Keith. “Weren’t you the one who was conflicted about marriage in the first place?”

“I was, but then I got over it.” There was an edge in Keith’s smile. “But once I’ve made up my mind, that’s no going back.”

“I know.” It was one of the things Shiro loved about him. “But keep in mind the one person on this planet who can marry people on this planet is Arusian.”

“Okay, fine.”

“And every Arusian wedding ends in a big group hug to send the couple on their way.”

Keith shuddered, but… “I can deal with that.” 

\--

“Shiro, Keith, good evening!” The village elder Mero gave them both a big hug. “This is a pleasant surprise.” He hugged Shiro again. “Didn’t you cancel class because of the weather?”

“I did. But,” and he smiled at Keith, “I was wondering if you could do us a favor tonight.”

“Anything!”

“Well, you may not want to agree just yet.” Shiro rubbed the back of his neck. “I mean, a wedding is a lot to ask—”

Mero grinned widely. “That’s wonderful!” He turned his attention to every other Arusian in the town square. “Everyone! Shiro and Keith are **finally** getting married! Right now!”

Roughly forty Arusians ran out to scream their congratulations/witness the ceremony.

“That’s a lot of beings staring at us,” Keith whispered to Shiro, voice strained. “Waiting to hug us.”

“If it’s bothering you, we’ll reschedule,” Shiro whispered back.

Keith shook his head. “If we wait, more will find us. Let’s do it now.”

“Yes, let’s do it now!” Mero looked up at Shiro. “Why are you marrying him?”

Shiro blinked. “He’s saved my life in every sense of the word.” He took Keith’s hand, placing it over his heart. “And I can’t imagine my life without him.”

“Great!” He turned to Keith, whose face was bright red and eyes were focused on the ground. “Why are you marrying him?”

Keith… cleared his throat. Three times. Finally, he mumbled, “I told you why I’m marrying you this morning.”

“It’s true, he did,” Shiro assured Mero.

“In that case, congratulations! You’re married!” Mero held his hands up to the heavens. “Commence the group hug!”

Shiro managed to kiss Keith right before the Arusians arrived, but after that, everything was Arusians hugging/wishing him well. After he managed to squirm free, he noticed Keith had already snuck away, and was on the comm Pidge created in case any of them needed to talk to reach each other quickly and privately.

“Hey, Lance,” Keith said to his comm. “Guess who got married before you did?” Lance’s _Whaaaaaat_ was loud enough that Shiro could hear it from roughly a meter away.

“Yep, it’s true. While you’re taming space mice, I’ll be enjoying my honeymoon with Shiro. And hey, isn’t it an Altean custom that married couples get to enjoy the wedding feast first?”

The reception was made up of Lance and Keith yelling at each other, while the Arusians swamped Shiro again.

\--

“Are you sure you’re okay with staying home for a honeymoon?”

Keith parked the craft, jumped down, and offered Shiro a hand. “Definitely. I don’t even like traveling that much.”

Shiro took the offered hand. “I never would have guessed.” He let Keith guide him to the front door. “Well, this is it. We’re together even when we’re old and grey.” He grimaced. “Well, in my case, old.” Any hint of black in his hair had turned into grey and white a long time ago.

Keith kissed him, nice and slow. “I can’t think of a better way to spend the rest of my life. Now, c’mon,” and he was unlocking the door with his free hand. “Let’s get you to bed.”

“Hm.” Shiro smiled easily. “Any particular reason you want me in bed so early?”

“I’m a newlywed. Guess.”


End file.
